


Online Friendship

by hoshiletigre



Category: SEVENTEEN (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Assassins & Hitmen, Discrimination, Gun Violence, Happy Ending, Hitman Lee Jihoon | Woozi, M/M, Social Media, Strangers to Lovers, Student Kim Mingyu, idk tbh
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-25
Updated: 2020-10-25
Packaged: 2021-03-09 06:34:50
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,962
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27199252
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hoshiletigre/pseuds/hoshiletigre
Summary: In the darkness of the night, a hitman named Lee Jihoon ends the life of his targets for his clients, thinking,believing, that his life can't be different now. In other words, there's no turning back since he started this career.He's lonely in this cold and merciless world, until @km97_4 starts talking to him.Since, he starts hoping,wishing, that his new friend will never become one of his targets.
Relationships: Kim Mingyu/Lee Jihoon | Woozi
Kudos: 14





	Online Friendship

**Author's Note:**

> So... [I said I wasn't going to publish it](https://twitter.com/hoshiletigre/status/1280855892188110849). Lol. (pls don't mind my broken english)  
> I changed my mind. Seriously, this au sounded good in my mind. I knew how to start, and how to end, it was the perfect combo to write it, but... I don't know... Like I said in the tweet, I like it overall, but not how I wrote the end, but the end is not the focus and that's why I did it the way I did it. I mean, you'll see/read it if you decide to stay on this page, right? 👀💦 If it was that bad, I wouldn't be posting it anyway.  
> ++ I tried doing research for this but I'm still not quite sure how hitmen do their stuff... so, if anything seems really absurd, I'm sorry! *clueless* (it's still over the top sometimes, imo)
> 
> Welp, I tried. Disclaimer: my english may be weird from time to time; hope that's not too disturbing.  
> Happy reading ~♪

It’s time. Jihoon is shaking, but he must remain calm. It’s his job, he can’t let everything fall apart now.

As discreetly and as fast as he can, he slides a hand underneath the front of his jacket, grabs his gun equipped with a silencer and shoots his target in the head before they get the chance to turn around and realize his true intentions.

There. It’s done. But the mission isn’t over yet. First, Jihoon must gather proof of his kill, then he has to clean before anyone sees what happened here. Of course, he always makes sure that no blood stains him and so far, everything went well.

He hides his weapon and takes his phone to record a video, which he then sends to his client, after cleaning the scene.

It’s crazy, Jihoon thinks, that nobody ever suspected him, that nothing _bad_ happened to him since he started this career.

But how did it even start in the first place? And why??

It’s a long story… that belongs to the past. It’s not worth thinking about it, especially when it’s painful like that.

Today, Jihoon is poorly sitting on his couch, his laptop on his lap, and looks around him, because he is bored, and when he sits properly, he starts feeling lonely. He thinks about his family and how he misses his parents.

He keeps thinking about them for a hot minute, then decides to give them a call later.

After that, his friends replace them in his mind. He misses them just as much… Unfortunately, Jihoon doesn't live near any of them, so they barely talk to each other now. A shame.

Sadly, he didn't manage to make any real friend around his place so far, as nobody he met fits his “ideal type”. Nobody truly understands him and he's tired of hearing comments and jokes made about his height, as if he chose it, as if he could do something about it. He doesn't make jokes about their bodies, so why? What's so funny?

He shakes his head. He must not think about them. It's not worth it.

So, now Jihoon is bored. Or, still bored. He thinks about what he could do, when he remembers his inactive Instagram account. Well… it’s not that he never posts on it, more like he doesn’t post very often.

He wonders what he could post on it, then changes his outfit and looks at himself in a mirror. That could do it, he thinks… It’s not exactly what he likes to wear usually, but it’s nice to have a different style sometimes, for a change. It’s cute… he feels cute. It’s not _that_ cute, still plain, but cuter than what he’s used to.

Once he got his phone in his hand, he takes a selfie in the mirror, then takes a look at it. It looks okay, it’s a full body shot but his face is partially covered by his hand and his phone. He smiles. He likes it.

Later, after Jihoon shamelessly copied someone else’s drawing on his notepad — not as good, obviously —, he checks his phone and looks at the notifications. He notices a person he doesn’t know among the people who liked his post. That person… actually liked a few other posts of his before, and started following him recently. Curious… Jihoon wonders why he’s being followed by someone like that, especially since they’re the only one doing that, and Jihoon is definitely not someone popular, at all.

Well… except when it comes to work sometimes. Maybe. He’s not sure.

That’s not it. That user, @km97_4, messaged him. He blinks. Should he open their message…? If something bad happens, he can always block and report them, so he takes a look:

“ _Hi! I hope I’m not bothering you >.< If that’s the case I’m sorry _

“ _May I know where you got your top??_

And they shared the photo he posted earlier… Really??

Whatever the real reason why they messaged him might be, it’s a harmless question so Jihoon replies.

 _Hey, it’s fine._ ”

 _I don’t remember where I got it, sorry._ ”

Was it a gift from his mom? Or friends? Or did he buy it in a thrift shop? He doesn’t remember. It’s just a white sweatshirt with ‘universe’ written on it, and a few decorations around the black text, like tiny stars and a planet. Just black on white, nothing fancy.

He doesn’t get a reply within the next minutes. It arrives about ten minutes later. And Jihoon replies.

The conversation keeps going, they keep talking.

In fact, five months later, they’re still talking to each other. Why? Because, obviously, the question about where he got his top was an excuse to approach him, @km97_4 was very interested in becoming friends with Jihoon and it seems like their tastes and their humor are very similar, so they just became somewhat close during these five months. At the very least, they are friends.

But why is Jihoon friends with a person he actually _never_ met in person…? It’s not that Jihoon is naive and easily trusts all strangers he meets, that’s not true as mentioned before. That guy just seems honest, and nice, and friendly, and cute. Yes, Jihoon is sure the other is male since they exchanged a few voice messages and his new friend called him once, because Jihoon told him he couldn’t sleep. It turned out the other male couldn’t sleep either so he wanted to sing a lullaby for him, which made Jihoon laugh, but that was when he discovered that his new friend sounded really nice when he sang like that. He doesn’t think he’s using a voice changer, that would make every other noise sound weird…

Anyway, does Jihoon know what his friend looks like? Not really. But he saw a few parts of his body, like his hands, his — strong — arms, his legs — partially covered —, and knows he is tall. He doesn’t exactly know how tall he is, but he must be really tall next to Jihoon. Besides, his skin tone looks darker than his. Their bodies must be really opposite, but that’s not what matters the most. So, Jihoon saw those, but never his face, while he saw Jihoon’s face as he posted it on his account. The other only posts photos of his daily life, which include parts of his body, never his face, and he draws too; that’s what he set as his icon.

What else does Jihoon know about that guy? Not his name. He knows his age though, his friend is just a little younger than him, by at least four months. Oh and he has a younger sister he complains about from time to time, and he is a college student. Jihoon doesn’t have siblings and that fact encouraged his friend to keep talking about her, but not as much as he would like to because he doesn’t want to bother Jihoon.

Of course, Jihoon still does his job as a hitman, and his new friend keeps studying. He’s just happy he has someone he can talk to when he wakes up, when he’s bored, when he goes to sleep. Really, Jihoon is happy.

Problem is… there’s still a lot Jihoon doesn’t know about him. Like… his face?? His _name_??? What if someone wants him to kill him…!? …No way. There’s no way they would live near each other, right? He likes to believe it’s the case. Because he doesn’t want to lose him now, he’s too attached to him and has a feeling that things can be even better. But how could they? Jihoon is not even being truthful with him because when asked what his job was, he said he didn’t want to talk about it. And if he finds out the truth… there’s no way he would want to stay friends with Jihoon.

It’s a terrible game Jihoon is playing but he can’t let go now. It’s already too late…

  
  
  


A drama Jihoon’s been watching lately is being broadcasted on the TV, so Jihoon sits down on his couch and takes a sip of his coffee. But his mug and TV aren’t the only things in front of it, there’s his laptop as well. So while watching the drama, Jihoon checks his last request.

Someone wants him to eliminate a certain Kim Mingyu, 23 years old, and there’s a couple of photos of him attached to the message. If Jihoon’s being honest, Mingyu is quite a hot man, he almost feels bad for having to kill him. But they’re the kind of people to have the ugliest mentality, aren’t they? Maybe Mingyu is one of them. Who knows.

Why does the client want him dead? Because he hurt them in the past, and not just a little bit. According to them, Kim Mingyu is a demon, a _monster_. Kim Mingyu must disappear.

Again, honestly, Jihoon doesn’t think this is a good reason to want him dead, they could’ve just moved on and forgotten about this guy, but who is Jihoon to judge them? It’s his job. Besides, he needs the money.

So on D-day, where Mingyu should be at some party in some popular bar, Jihoon gears up and leaves his place as discreetly as possible, his gun safely hidden in his bulletproof jacket. He’s not sure why but he feels weird… like he’s doing something he shouldn’t be doing, it makes him feel uneasy.

He shakes the thought out of his head, there’s no time to regret anything. He’s a hitman, he can’t let his feelings get to him.

But before he actually did leave, he greeted back his online friend, who just finished his class about an hour ago.

When Jihoon arrives, he observes the place and the people, and thinks about a plan, which he has already prepared but he always has to upgrade it at the last minute. First, get inside without being seen as suspicious. Then, find the target, be friendly to him, have a walk outside with him and end him where nobody can see nor hear them. Hopefully, everything will go accordingly, but who knows? Maybe the target will refuse to go outside. Or better: the target could go outside without Jihoon forcing him to.

Sighing softly, Jihoon prepares himself for the worst, which would be him getting caught, or him being murdered.

Once he’s done, he goes inside and settles on a free stool. So far, nothing bad happened, so Jihoon continues with his plan. Where is the target, Kim Mingyu? He looks around, and keeps searching, when he gets interrupted. Some girl thought he was lost and wanted to offer him a drink. He rejects her as kindly as possible and doesn’t keep his eyes on her when she leaves with a sulking face. How dare she distract him like that?? He’s on a mission, damn it.

He makes sure nobody can tell he’s pissed off, then he quickly regains his composure and keeps looking for his target. And there, he found Kim Mingyu. As described by his client, he’s quite tall and talkative. And buff too, like he could crush him with ease if he wanted to.

In fact, Jihoon starts feeling dizzy. If he keeps staring at him like that, he’s going to lose his mind, _vomit_.

But why? Jihoon never felt like that before. What is happening? It’s not like he’s seen Kim Mingyu before. There’s no way he did.

He shakes the feeling off his mind and gets on his feet, making sure his attire is looking okay. If only Mingyu could just walk outside _on his own_ , _alone_ , but no, he appears to be too talkative and friendly and surrounded by people, thus Jihoon has to do it.

He makes his way to the target as best as he can, which is not easy since most people are taller than him, but he manages it. He’s a few meters away from where Mingyu should be, when the latter turns his head towards him, and looks very surprised and shocked.

_Why?_

Jihoon finally manages to look into Mingyu’s eyes, trying his best to appear as friendly as possible, but he ends up in the same state.

_No way…_

Kim Mingyu looks at him like he makes his heart flutter. They’re literally communicating with their _eyes_. He looks familiar…

Then, Mingyu opens his mouth and says, “Uji…”.

Now, Jihoon’s eyes are wide open.

This is it.

Kim Mingyu _is_ @km97_4, his online friend. There’s no way he isn’t since nobody else calls him _Uji_. And that _voice_? It’s the same one that sang a lullaby to him!

He can’t do it.

Jihoon can’t kill Mingyu.

He can’t end his friend’s life.

His legs are shaking, his entire body suddenly feels cold.

He must leave. He can’t stay.

Mingyu looks confused when Jihoon starts stepping back and looking at him in horror. “U–Uji, what’s wrong?”

But the shorter of the two can’t say a word. People are staring at them. He must go, _now_.

So that’s what he does, he turns around and flees the place, as fast as he can.

He’s been running for at least five minutes now, he’s getting seriously tired but he can’t stop since Mingyu’s been running after him the _entire time_. His lungs hurt, his legs are in pain, a migraine is taking place in his head, he can’t go on any longer but he must keep going. There’s quite a distance between them, though it’s getting shorter and shorter, Jihoon doesn’t lose hope.

Well, he would’ve kept running, he _could’ve_ , if only his gun didn’t suddenly drop from his outfit.

It makes a loud noise, making him stand still. He can hear Mingyu coming to a stop and breathing hard. They’re both out of breath, and staring at the weapon on the floor between them. It’s closer to Jihoon, he could grab it and run again, but… something is telling him he shouldn’t.

There’s nobody around, the area _luckily_ looks deserted and it’s dark, so he could grab his chance and–

No.

Jihoon can’t. He’s frozen. Mingyu is going to hate him now that he saw the gun he was carrying. Owning guns isn’t legal without a specific permit, which automatically makes Jihoon a _criminal_.

Mingyu is too kind, he can’t be friends with a person like Jihoon.

“What… what is this, Uji…?” He starts asking. “This… You’re…” Jihoon doesn’t have to look at him to know that he is shaking out of fear. Who wouldn’t anyway? “This isn’t real, right? I’m dreaming, right?? That must be it… It’s the alcohol, you can’t be standing before me right now… this is an illusion…”

He keeps talking and saying nonsense, as if that could reassure him, but he’s just making Jihoon panic more and more, so he throws himself on the gun and points it at Mingyu, in hopes that he will escape from him. “Leave! Or I will shoot you!” Tears are rolling down his cheeks and he, too, is shaking from head to toe. He can’t help it, he’s being overwhelmed by his feelings and losing control of himself. It never happened before. What is happening?

It’s clear that Mingyu is too stubborn, he won’t leave no matter what Jihoon does. He must be crazy… Nobody wants to be friends with a _murderer_.

The taller male shakes his head, though Jihoon can’t see him clearly. The world is a blurry mess, he’s sobbing too loudly to his taste but won’t let go of the gun. He no longer knows what he is pointing at with his weapon, but he refuses to give up.

He hears a footstep. Mingyu must be walking towards him. Yes, he is definitely crazy. They both lost their minds at this point. “That’s a toy, right? It can’t be real… I know you, you wouldn’t kill anybody.” _Nonsense_. The gun is clearly not a toy, especially after making that noise when it fell.

What is Mingyu thinking?

He keeps getting closer, and closer, and _closer_ … “Please… Uji–”

“Stop it!” Jihoon yells.

Silence surrounds them once more, but it doesn’t last as Mingyu starts walking again, his voice so soft and careful, as if he was trying not to bruise Jihoon with his words.. “No… You, stop it. Give… give me a chance. Please, Uji.”

_What…?_

Those words just shook Jihoon and the gun was back on the floor. Mingyu is close to him now but it’s completely blurry, Jihoon can’t even see his face. He’s crying too hard. He hates feelings.

He looks down, when he feels two arms pulling him into the other’s chest. Mingyu is obviously stronger than him, there’s nothing he can do to run away now that he is hugging him so tightly. But it doesn’t hurt at all, it feels nice. Really nice.

  
  


Later, after things calmed down between them, they arrive at Jihoon’s place so Jihoon can explain everything to him. He won’t let Mingyu go without telling him everything now that he knows about the gun he owns.

The first thing Mingyu does is visit the place, like he is amazed by it. It’s a really simple apartment, Jihoon didn’t do anything fancy with it, but somehow, Mingyu likes it a lot. “I can’t believe I’m seeing everything with my own two eyes! It’s not exactly how I imagined it to be but– close enough!” He giggles.

Jihoon looks at him. His friend is ridiculous but, for some reasons, he feels some kind of happiness and it makes his chest a bit warmer.

Mingyu looks back at him. “Also– I can’t believe we don’t live that far from each other. Where I live, there’s quite a lot of people. Here must feel a little lonely at times.”

Jihoon shrugs. “Maybe.”

Then they settle down in the living room for the explanations, which Jihoon gives to Mingyu. He doesn’t give him all the details like exactly how many people he put down nor how he did that. He, at least, makes sure he understands his situation without making him too uncomfortable, or disgusted.

“I… I see…” Mingyu says when Jihoon is done. He sounds really lost, confused and thoughtful… Well, Jihoon can’t blame him, who would think he, of all people, would be an _assassin_?? a _murderer_??

Nobody.

“That’s crazy, but I know who your client might be,” Mingyu continues then proceeds to tell Jihoon who he has on his mind.

A girl, who happens to be a student like him, showed interest in him and despite getting rejected several times by Mingyu, she still insisted, until she had enough and decided he was horrible after all and he was going to pay for his mistake with his life.

Shocked at the revelation, Jihoon widens his eyes and places a hand in front of his mouth. He never thought someone would be disgusting enough to want to harm Mingyu, a literal _angel_.

He’s not mad enough to try to kill her instead of continuing the mission and getting rid of his friend. Revenge is not a solution and Jihoon doesn’t want to get into trouble with his job and personal life. Not anymore. Besides, it’s not like she’s going to get him killed; she doesn’t even know who he is anyway. “Okay… well… what a bitch,” he says, making Mingyu chuckle a little bit, before nodding his head at his words.

They don’t say anything for a minute or two, then, Mingyu starts saying, “So…”.

And Jihoon replies, “My job is killing people but I won’t go after her. I’ll cancel the mission and refund her. I can’t kill you… You… you deserve to live a long and wonderful life.”

It makes Mingyu chuckle again, awkwardly. “You too. You should… quit your crazy job.” _What?_ “Go for a small job until I graduate so we can… um, you know, live together and be financially stable…” When he’s done talking, he looks flustered and that makes Jihoon blush. When was the last time Jihoon blushed…? “I mean– You don’t have to–”

“You want… to live with _me_...?” The older male interrupts. A playful smirk suddenly appears on his lips. “Are you saying you want to be in a relationship with _me_? That sounds… crazier than my job.”

Yet again, Mingyu laughs, but his cheeks don’t stop turning into a darker color. “If I’m being honest, I was always flirting with you. Why did I want to talk to you in the first place?” he asks, but Jihoon, with no expression on his face, stares silently at him. “Because I… I always thought you were funny, kind, talented, cute and… handsome.”

It must be a joke, Jihoon thinks. Jihoon was joking, but it seems like Mingyu is serious; he’s blushing a lot and he’s not even looking at Jihoon anymore. Sincerity is written all over his face, and it makes Jihoon feel weird.

Come to think of it, Mingyu’s known what he looked like for a while now, along with his personality and other things, while Jihoon didn’t even know what his face could be like. It’s quite unfair, but it’s not like Jihoon was forced to reveal his face. He doesn’t complain, he would fall for Mingyu whether he was good-looking or not. Because, yes, Jihoon is _attracted_ to Mingyu.

But still, it’s too late already. Jihoon can’t go back to a normal life. “Whether you’re serious or not, I appreciate it,” he smiles, a bit sadly. “Thank you, but I don’t think that’s going to be possible.” Mingyu looks like he’s about to say something but Jihoon motions for him to stay quiet, then continues, “Sure, you made my daily life more lively and I ended up trusting you faster than I ever trusted anybody I met online, but… I can’t… I already did too much damage, killed too many people… my life can’t be better than it is now, I’ll end up miserable, thus we can’t be together. You deserve better.”

Silence. Mingyu looks like he is processing Jihoon’s words, but he also looks like he’s looking for words to convince him, to change his mind.

Meanwhile, Jihoon tries to convince the other, with his eyes, that no matter what he has to say, he won’t change his mind.

“You…” Mingyu starts saying, quietly, still deep in thoughts. “It’s not too late… You can… move on… turn the page… I believe your life can be much better than it is now.” He gives Jihoon a hard stare. “I’ll help you.”

Jihoon frowns at him and shakes his head. “I told you–” But he interrupts himself when Mingyu takes his hands in his.

“Uji… Trust me. As long as you didn’t try, you can’t know the answer.”

They’re still looking into each other’s eyes, until Jihoon looks down. It doesn’t make any sense… but maybe that’s how kind Mingyu actually is. So kind that he’s willing to close his eyes before what Jihoon’s done. How brave… or stupid, Jihoon isn’t quite sure which one applies to his situation. Maybe the latter.

He sighs.

  
  


After that day, efforts are in the process. Jihoon is currently jobless and Mingyu is finishing his studies.

Somehow, Jihoon managed to make himself forgotten. Regarding his last commission… he did cancel it as soon as possible and got death threats from the client, but ignored them.

It’s only a matter of time before the pair actually starts going on dates, and when Mingyu finally graduates from college, they move together in a new place, far from where they were originally living. At about the same time, they started being in a relationship, and Jihoon is very happy.

He’s especially filled with joy since Mingyu came into his life.

**Author's Note:**

> The bulletproof jacket is odd, isn't it? lol. I took some inspiration from City Hunter, the anime. :")


End file.
